I have been a quiet witness and I have watched many around me who have had tragedies of death befall them, and yet they continue down faithful paths, embraced along the way by Divine beings and angels on both sides of the veil. I have watched their examples for years, and I have learned along the way about how, if such tragedy befalls me, how I would navigate something so hard. I would do it with a heart full of faith and gratitude. Gratitude for the knowledge that I have that this life is only a stepping stone along the path of our eternal journeys, that we can be eternally with those we love if we walk a covenant path--always trusting in Heavenly Father and never doubting in His eternal plan of happiness. I would strive to keep a spiritual connection with those loved ones who have passed on ahead of me. That I would fine-tune my spiritual ears so that they would still be ever apart of my life and an influence of good in my earthly journey. These thoughts have developed within me, never with any sort of trepidation or fear. Never has anxiety accompanied them. That's how I know that it is the spirit that has taught me.
2 Timothy 1:7
“For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.”
Today, I experienced a similar teaching pattern about this subject. I was reading about one of these examples I have discussed and a quiet thought came over me. It was as though the Lord was talking to me, as He has in the past, through the Holy Ghost. It was a spiritual impression, not so much of words, but of feelings and words together. He seemed to say to me, "I prepare you for the trials that come to you. You have been prepared for everything you would face in this life. A trial of this magnitude did not come to you when you were young, you were not ready. I lovingly prepare you for the hard things you will face." That was the thought, the next thought was this: "Write these thoughts down." I hesitated for a few moments, worried about how it would sound if I wrote them down. However, the thought came again to record it, and to record it today, so that I would remember that the Lord loves me and prepares me for all of the hard things I will face. And so, I am writing it down.
I do not know if a death of a loved one close to me is in my near future, however, I do know that at some point, we all must die. Because our Father loves us, He wants us to return to Him. Death is just that door, rather that passageway, that carries us home. Life continues in ways that we have only just forgotten. Our spirits live on to await that day when we will be reunited with our bodies.
Many years ago, I had written in my journal about how my testimony of the Plan of Salvation had grown and how I had added knowledge of that plan. The next entry in that journal was the death of my two cousins, Micheal and Amanda. I learned then, at the age of 13, that the Lord had prepared me for what would be, at that point in my life, the hardest trial that I had yet experienced.
Great blessings, and a closer intimacy with our Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ await those who draw near unto them in such times of need. Every single one of the examples I have watched who have experienced death of loved ones and allowed themselves to learn and grow from the experience, every single one has said something along the lines of, although it is heart wrenching and so difficult, they would not trade the lessons and experiences they gained along the way. That has become a powerful testimony builder to me that the faithful receive Heavenly embraces along the way. That's what I would seek, if ever something so difficult happened to me.
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